What do you do if you have a slow PC? Can you fix it or is it time for a new one? R&R discuss things to check for and a good order to try them in.
The first thing you need to determine is if it really is your PC or if you maybe just mean the internet is acting slow. As a tech-driven culture, we sometimes forget that our computers are separate from the internet and both can have problems independent form one another.
A Slow Internet
If the internet IS the problem, it could be a problem with your internet service provider (ISP). It might also be a problem with the network you’re connected to, or your network or wireless card. I would check with each of those items in that order to find the true cause of your problem.
A Slow PC
If you’ve ruled out the internet and you do have a slow PC, then you’ll want to try a few things.
First, apply the Golden Rule of all Technology! That’s right, turn it off and then back on again and see if that fixes the issue. If you want a good reason why, check out this past episode where we explain why rebooting works.
Next, rule out some sort of infection. Do a full antivirus and anti-malware scan on your hard drive. There are some other softwares you can get like CCleaner to check out what programs are on the system. However, before you do, you may want to reach out to your I.T. Support because there’s a lot of “free PC cleanup softwares” out there that are just as bad as malware and you want to ask a professional before you install something like that.
Finally, it could be the hardware. There are memory testers and hard drive testers out there that can check for that kind of stuff. But again, if you’ve reached this point, I would recommend a professional do the testing. Check to see if you have an active warranty with your PC manufacturer or the store where you bought it.
When is it time for a new PC?
If there’s no warranty available and you need to have someone take a look at your slow PC, listen up! I would first recommend getting an estimate for how much it might take to troubleshoot and fix the issues and then compare that to the cost of buying a new system before you give the go ahead to any Tech company. If the cost to repair is more than 50 percent of the cost to buy new or your computer is older than 4 years, you might be better off just replacing it.
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